Monthly Archives: May 2013

Setting the perfect dinner table involves more than just laying out the proper utensils. A good host will also consider the aesthetic details of the process as well. Here are some great tips for setting an inviting and beautiful dinner table.

Add Color: Placemats and chargers are an excellent way to add color and excitement to your dinner table.

Image via Paul Michael Home

A Little Fragrance:Flowered centerpieces are both eye- and nose-catching but take care not to make them too high or tooaromatic.

Image via Paul Michael Home

Image via Paul Michael Home

Image via Paul Michael Company

Use Multiple China Sets: Contrasting dinnerware is an easy way to add complexity to the décor of your dinner table. The look should result in an eclectic feel that is definitely going to be a great icebreaker at the start of your dinner party.

Place the Silverware Properly: Forks on the left, knives and spoons on the right. Also, be aware of which glasses to use for water, red and white wines.

Image via Paul Michael Home

We carry a large variety of napkins, place mats, aprons, cookbooks, and glassware that would be great for any home. For information about the best ways to set your dinner table or for other home design ideas, visit us at the Paul Michael Company website or join us on Facebook. We’d love to share with you the latest trends and styles.

Scent influences our mood and perception, which is why many people choose scented detergents and wear perfume. Scents also affect how people perceive particular environments. For this reason, scented candles play an important role in making a home feel attractive and welcoming.

Image via Paul Michael Home

Room by Room You don’t have to use the same scent everywhere. For the bedroom, you might want subtle, soothing scents such as sandalwood, myrrh or a soft floral. In the dining room, invigorating and deliciously scented candles, such as citrus or vanilla, work well.

Image via Paul Michael Home

Image via Paul Michael Home

Seasonal Scents Scented candles are a great way to transition the home to a new season. In spring and summer, for example, floral scents or anything reminiscent of a beach or open field brings the season to the space. In fall and winter, cinnamon, baked apple, clove or pumpkin spice candles bring a sense of coziness and warmth.

Image via Paul Michael Home

If the scent of cleaning products lingers in the room, air it out before using candles. Otherwise, the scents will compete unpleasantly.

Image via Paul Michael Home

Image via Paul Michael Home

For great scented candles and much more, stop by any of our Paul Michael Company locations. Keep up to date with tips and trends by joining our Facebook page.

Now that spring has returned, it is officially gardening season and Paul Michael Company is currently bursting with a variety of ceramic pottery that is perfect for container gardening. Container gardens are a wonderful way to add some color to your front porch or your patio, but they can also create beautiful variety in your garden or landscape.

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Celebrity gardener and lifestyle guru, P. Allen Smith, offers some excellent advice on his blog to help you create a successful container garden. Here are some of his tips:

Make sure you choose the right size container for the plant you intend to place in it. You also need to ensure that the container has a drainage hole.

Get soil that is meant for use in containers, and if you can match the type of soil to the type of plant that’s all the better.

When watering your plants, water the plant at the bottom of the pot to reach the roots more quickly.

Choosing the right plants for your container is important for a successful container garden, but you should also consider the design of the container itself. Don’t settle for cheap plastic containers or boring terra cotta either; you can make a statement with the containers you choose, and high-quality pottery will last you a lifetime. Stop by any of Paul Michael Company’s locations to see containers that can add personality to your porch or garden.

The right rug can define a whole room. Rugs are great ways to differentiate different areas within a room or to define a space beneath furniture. They add comfort and warmth to wood and tile floors and create extra visual interest to carpeted floors. A rug can showcase your personality and inform a color scheme. There are seemingly countless styles and shapes and colors of rug from which to choose, so where do you begin? Try these tips to help get you started.

Bring a sample of the colors in the room or take a picture. This will help you determine which color of rug will work best. If you have solid color furniture, you can choose a rug with a pattern to help establish a mood. Dark colors will help create an atmosphere of intimacy for the room while light colors will help a small room appear larger. You can also select warm colors such as red or yellow to bring warmth to the room or cool colors such as blue or green to give the opposite effect.

Determine where you want the rug placed. If it’s in a high traffic area such as a hallway, then you will want be sure the rug is durable and easy to clean. You may also consider a dark color to avoid dirt or stains being noticed right away.

The Paul Michael Company offers a wide selection of rugs that will go perfectly for any room. Come visit any of our locations to see the unique rugs you can use in your own home!

Despite recent “Color of the Year” designations awarded to winners such as Tangerine Tango and Emerald Green, America’s favorite color to paint with last year was blue. This cool and calming color tone has a powerful effect on our moods by aiding our intuition and encouraging rest and serenity.

Blue comes in a wide variety of shades, each with their own effect on the atmosphere of the room. Dark navy can create a rich and cozy atmosphere while a vibrant sky blue can add life and energy to the space. A very saturated blue makes a bold statement, while a grey-blue has timeless sophistication. Shades of blue all work well together, too, so it is easy to mix and match to create the precise mood you want for your room.

Blue is predicted to be one of the popular colors in 2013, joining Pantone’s Color of the Year and runway favorites Dior gray and salmon pink, each of which work well with blue. Blue accents are a great way to incorporate this well-loved color in any room without having to spend a lot of time and energy redecorating. You can create an atmosphere of coastal merriment with blue sea-themed decor from the Paul Michael Company, or dress your home with various blue-colored vases for a quick and easy way to add calm, depth, and exhilaration to any room in your home

Searching for more “blue ideas” for your home? if so, visit us on Facebook or contact us today!